Integrating a first contact structure in a gate last process

ABSTRACT

A method is provided that includes providing a substrate; forming a transistor in the substrate, the transistor having a dummy gate; forming a dielectric layer over the substrate and transistor; forming a contact feature in the dielectric layer; and after forming the contact feature, replacing the dummy gate of the transistor with a metal gate. An exemplary contact feature is a dual contact.

This application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser. No.12/341,891, filed Dec. 22, 2008, which claims priority to U.S.Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/091,933, filed on Aug. 26,2008, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein byreference.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates generally to forming an integratedcircuit device on a substrate and, more particularly, to integrating afirst contact structure in a gate last process.

Semiconductor device geometries continue to dramatically decrease insize since such devices were first introduced several decades ago.Today's fabrication plants are routinely producing devices havingfeature dimensions less than 65 nm. However, solving the problemsassociated with implementing new process and equipment technology whilecontinuing to satisfy device requirements has become more challenging.For example, metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) transistors have typicallybeen formed with polysilicon gate electrodes. Polysilicon material hasbeen used due to its thermal resistive properties during hightemperature processing, which allows it to be annealed at hightemperatures along with source/drain structures. Furthermore,polysilicon's ability to block the ion implantation of doping atoms intothe channel region is advantageous, as it allows for the easy formationof self aligned source/drain structures after gate patterning iscompleted.

In some IC designs, there has been a desire to replace the polysilicongate electrode with a metal gate electrode to improve device performanceas feature sizes continue to decrease. A gate last process may beimplemented to address the concerns of high temperature processing onmetal materials. In a gate last process, a dummy poly gate is initiallyformed and may continue with processing until deposition of aninterlayer dielectric (ILD). The dummy poly gate may then be removed andreplaced with a metal gate. However, problems arise when integrating agate last process with other fabrication processes such as formation ofa first contact structure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present disclosure is best understood from the following detaileddescription when read with the accompanying figures. It is emphasizedthat, in accordance with the standard practice in the industry, variousfeatures are not drawn to scale and are used for illustration purposesonly. In fact, the dimensions of the various features may be arbitrarilyincreased or reduced for clarity of discussion.

FIGS. 1A to 1F are cross-sectional views of a semiconductor device atvarious stages of fabrication in a gate last process;

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of a method for fabricating a semiconductor devicehaving a dual first contact structure according to various aspects ofthe present disclosure;

FIGS. 3A to 3H are cross-sectional views of a semiconductor device atvarious stages of fabrication according to the method of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a semiconductor device having a dualfirst contact structure according to various aspects of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a semiconductor device having analternative dual first contact structure according to various aspects ofthe present disclosure; and

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a semiconductor device havinganother alternative dual first contact structure according to variousaspects of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The following disclosure provides many different embodiments, orexamples, for implementing different features of the invention. Specificexamples of components and arrangements are described below to simplifythe present disclosure. These are, of course, merely examples and arenot intended to be limiting. In addition, the present disclosure mayrepeat reference numerals and/or letters in the various examples. Thisrepetition is for the purpose of simplicity and clarity and does not initself dictate a relationship between the various embodiments and/orconfigurations discussed.

Referring to FIGS. 1A to 1F, illustrated are cross-sectional views of asemiconductor device 100 at various stages of fabrication in a gate lastprocess. In FIG. 1A, the semiconductor device 100 may include regions102 and 104 in which an N-channel field effect transistor (nFET) andP-channel FET (pFET) may be formed, respectively. It is understood thatpart of the semiconductor device 100 may be fabricated by complementarymetal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) technology process flow, and thus someprocesses are only briefly described herein. Further, the semiconductordevice 100 may include various other devices and features, such as othertypes of transistors such as bipolar junction transistors, resistors,capacitors, diodes, fuses, etc., but is simplified for a betterunderstanding of the inventive concepts of the present disclosure.

The semiconductor device 100 may include a semiconductor substrate 106such as a silicon substrate. The substrate 106 may include variousdoping configurations depending on design requirements as is known inthe art. The substrate 106 may also include other elementarysemiconductors such as germanium and diamond. Alternatively, thesubstrate 106 may include a compound semiconductor and/or an alloysemiconductor. Further, the substrate 106 may optionally include anepitaxial layer (epi layer), may be strained for performanceenhancement, and may include a silicon-on-insulator (SOI) structure.

The semiconductor device 100 may further include an isolation structure108 such as a shallow trench isolation (STI) feature formed on thesubstrate 106 for isolating the active regions in the substrate as isknown in the art. The isolation structure may be formed of siliconoxide, silicon nitride, silicon oxynitride, fluoride-doped silicateglass (FSG), and/or a low-k dielectric material known in the art.

The nFET 102 and pFET 104 devices may each include a gate dielectriclayer 110 including an interfacial layer/high-k dielectric layer formedover the substrate 106. The interfacial layer may include a siliconoxide layer (SiO₂) or silicon oxynitride (SiON) having a thicknessranging from about 5 to about 10 angstroms (Å) formed on the substrate106. The high-k dielectric layer may be formed on the interfacial layerby atomic layer deposition (ALD) or other suitable technique. The high-kdielectric layer may include a thickness ranging from about 10 to about40 angstroms (Å). The high-k dielectric layer may include hafnium oxide(HfO₂). Alternatively, the high-k dielectric layer may optionallyinclude other high-k dielectrics, such as TiO₂, HfZrO, Ta₂O₃, HfSiO₄,ZrO₂, ZrSiO₂, combinations thereof, or other suitable material. Further,the high-k gate dielectric layer may include a multiple layerconfiguration such as HfO₂/SiO₂ or HfO₂/SiON.

The nFET 102 and pFET 104 devices may each further include a cappinglayer 112 for tuning a work function of a metal layer (for the gateelectrode) for properly performing as an nFET and pFET, respectively.For example, the capping layer 112 may include Al₂O₃, La₂O₃, LaSiO,TiAlN, TaN, TaC, TiN, TaSi, TiAl, combinations thereof, or othersuitable material. The capping layer may be formed on or underneath thehigh-k dielectric layer. The capping layer may be formed by ALD, CVD, orPVD.

The nFET 102 and pFET 104 devices may each further include a metal gatelayer 114 formed over the gate dielectric layer 110. The metal gatelayer 114 may include a thickness ranging from about 10 to about 200angstroms (Å). The metal gate layer 114 may be formed by variousdeposition techniques, such as chemical vapor deposition (CVD), physicalvapor deposition (PVD or sputtering), plating, or other suitabletechnique. The metal gate layer 114 may include an N work function metal(N-metal) or P work function metal (P-metal) depending on the type oftransistor. The metal gate layer 114 may include TiN, TaN, ZrSi₂, MoSi₂,TaSi₂, NiSi₂, WN, or other suitable material. The devices 102, 104 mayeach further include a dummy polysilicon or poly layer 116 formed on themetal gate layer 114 by a deposition or other suitable process. Thedummy poly layer 116 may include a thickness ranging from 400 to about800 angstroms (Å). The devices 102, 104 may each further include a hardmask 118 formed over the dummy poly layer 116. The hard mask 118 may beformed by a deposition process or other suitable process. The hard mask118 may include silicon nitride, silicon oxynitride, silicon carbide, orother suitable material. The hard mask 118 may include a thicknessranging from about 100 to about 300 angstroms (Å). Sidewall spacers 120may be formed on either side of the gate stack as is known in the art.The sidewall spacers may include silicon nitride, silicon oxide, orsilicon oxynitride.

The nFET 102 and pFET 104 devices may each further include source/drainregions including lightly doped source/drain regions and heavy dopedsource/drain regions. The source/drain regions may be formed byimplanting p-type or n-type dopants or impurities into the substrate 106depending on the configuration of the transistors 102, 104. The dummypoly gates and source/drain structures may be formed by methodsincluding thermal oxidation, polysilicon deposition, photolithography,ion implantation, etching, and various other methods. The transistors102, 104 may further include silicide features 122 formed on thesource/drain regions by a salicide (self-aligned silicide) process toform a contact. The silicide features 122 may include nickel silicide,cobalt silicide, tungsten silicide, tantalum silicide, titaniumsilicide, platinum silicide, erbium silicide, palladium silicide, orcombinations thereof.

After formation of the various microelectronic devices and structuresdiscussed above, a stressed layer may be formed over the substrate 106.For example, a tensile-contact etch stop layer (T-CESL) 130 may beformed over the nFET device 102, and a compressive-CESL (C-CESL) 140 maybe formed over the pFET device 104. The T-CESL 130 and C-CESL 140 may beformed of silicon nitride, silicon oxynitride, and/or other suitablematerials. A dielectric layer such as an inter-layer (or level)dielectric (ILD) layer 150 may be formed overlying the T-CESL 130 andC-CESL 140 by chemical vapor deposition (CVD), high density plasma CVD(HDP-CVD), spin-on, physical vapor deposition (PVD or sputtering), orother suitable methods. The ILD layer 150 may include silicon oxide,silicon oxynitride, or a low-k material. In a gate last process, thedummy poly gate structures 116 of the devices 102, 104 may be removedand replaced with metal gate structures as discussed below.

In FIG. 1B, a portion of the ILD layer 150 may be removed and planarizedby a chemical mechanical polishing (CMP) process 160 (e.g., first ILDCMP process) until a top portion of the dummy poly gate structures 116is reached. However, it has been observed that following the ILD CMPprocess 160 there may be some dishing (e.g., chemical effect) in aregion between the devices 102, 104 such that a void 165 may be formed.Further, the ILD CMP process 160 may cause some erosion 167 at a region168 of the substrate 106 due to the different pattern structures anddensities in the region of the devices 102, 104 as compared to theregion 168. In other words, the region 168 may include none or a fewdevices or structures formed therein (e.g., low pattern density) ascompared to the region where the devices 102, 104 are formed (e.g., highpattern density).

In FIG. 1C, the dummy poly gate structures 116 may be removed in boththe nFET 102 and pFET 104 device by an etch back process or othersuitable process. Further, the metal gate layer 114 in the pFET device104 may be removed by an etch process so that a P-metal may bere-deposited. It should be noted that the metal gate layer 114 in thenFET device 102 may remain and perform as an N-metal. Accordingly, theprocess may be considered as a hybrid process including a gate firstflow to form the metal gate of the nFET device and a gate last flow toform the metal gate of the pFET device. In other embodiments, both themetal gates of the nFET 102 (N-metal) and pFET 104 (P-metal) devices,respectively, may be formed after removal of the dummy poly layer.Following the removal of the poly gate structures 116, a trench 171 inthe nFET device 102 side and a trench 172 in the pFET device 104 sidemay be formed.

In FIG. 1D, a work function metal layer 180 such as WN or TiN may bedeposited over the dielectric layer 150 filling in a portion of thetrenches 171, 172. The work function metal layer 180 may be deposited byCVD or PVD. A filler metal layer 182 such as Al, W, or Cu may then bedeposited over the work function metal layer 180 filling in theremaining portion of the trenches 171, 172. The filler metal layer 182may be formed by CVD, PVD, plating, or other suitable process. It shouldbe noted that the work function metal layer 180 and filler metal layer182 may also be deposited in the void 165 between the devices 102, 104and the eroded portion 167 in the isolated region 168. In FIG. 1E, a CMP(e.g., metal CMP process) process may be performed on the filler metallayer 180 and work function metal layer 182 and may stop at theinterlayer dielectric. Following the CMP process, metal residues mayremain in the void 165 and eroded portion 167, which can adverselyeffect subsequent processing.

In FIG. 1F, a first contact 190 may be formed through the ILD layer 150for connecting to the S/D regions of the nFET 102 and pFET 104 devicesvia the silicide features 122. However, during the formation of thefirst contact 190, the metal residue in the void 165 may stop an etchingprocess from reaching or landing on the silicide region 122.Accordingly, the semiconductor device 100 may be defective in connectingto the doped regions (e.g., S/D regions) of the nFET 102 and pFET 104devices. Further, the region 168 may include an overlay box that is usedfor alignment in a photolithography patterning process. The metalresidue in the eroded portion 167 may adversely effect the mechanismthat aligns the overlay box in region 168 with an alignment mark on thephotomask or reticle in the photolithography patterning process.

Referring to FIG. 2, illustrated is a flowchart of a method 200 forfabricating a semiconductor device having a dual first contact structureaccording to various aspects of the present disclosure. Referring alsoto FIGS. 3A to 3H, illustrated are cross-sectional views of asemiconductor device 300 being fabricated according to the method 200 ofFIG. 2. The semiconductor device 300 may be similar to the semiconductordevice 100 of FIG. 1 except for the differences discussed below.Accordingly, similar features in FIGS. 1 and 3 are numbered the same forthe sake of simplicity and clarity.

It is understood that part of the semiconductor device 300 may befabricated by complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) technologyprocess flow, and thus some processes are only briefly described herein.Further, the semiconductor device 300 may include various other devicesand features such as other types of transistors such as bipolar junctiontransistors, resistors, capacitors, diodes, fuses, etc. but issimplified for a better understanding of the inventive concepts of thepresent disclosure.

The method 200 begins with block 210 in which a semiconductor substratemay be provided. In FIG. 3A, the semiconductor device 300 may include asemiconductor substrate 106 such as a silicon substrate. The substrate106 may include various doping configurations depending on designrequirements as is known in the art. The semiconductor device 100 mayfurther include an isolation structure 108 such as a shallow trenchisolation (STI) feature formed in the substrate 106 for isolating theactive regions in the substrate as is known in the art.

The method 200 continues with block 220 in which a transistor may beformed in the substrate, the transistor having a dummy gate and a dopedregion. The semiconductor device 300 may include regions 102 and 104 inwhich an N-channel field effect transistor (nFET) and P-channel FET(pFET) may be formed, respectively. The nFET 102 and pFET 104 devicesmay each include a gate dielectric layer 110 including an interfaciallayer/high-k dielectric layer formed over the substrate 106. The high-kdielectric layer may be formed on the interfacial layer by atomic layerdeposition (ALD) or other suitable technique. The high-k dielectriclayer may include hafnium oxide (HfO₂). Alternatively, the high-kdielectric layer may optionally include other high-k dielectrics, suchas TiO₂, HfZrO, Ta₂O₃, HfSiO₄, ZrO₂, ZrSiO₂, combinations thereof, orother suitable material. Further, the high-k gate dielectric layer mayinclude a multiple layer configuration such as HfO₂/SiO₂ or HfO₂/SiON.

The nFET 102 and pFET 104 devices may each further include a cappinglayer 112 for tuning a work function of a metal layer (for the gateelectrode) for properly performing as an nFET and pFET, respectively.For example, the capping layer 112 may include Al₂O₃, La₂O₃, LaSiO,TiAlN, TaN, TaC, TiN, TaSi, TiAl, combinations thereof, or othersuitable material. The capping layer may be formed on or underneath thehigh-k dielectric layer. The capping layer may be formed by ALD, CVD, orPVD.

The nFET 102 and pFET 104 device may each further include a metal gatelayer 114 formed over the gate dielectric layer 110. The metal gatelayer 114 may include an N work function metal (N-metal) or P workfunction metal (P-metal) depending on the type of transistor. The metalgate layer 114 may include TiN, TaN, ZrSi₂, MoSi₂, TaSi₂, NiSi₂, WN, orother suitable material. The devices 102, 104 may each further include adummy polysilicon or poly layer 116 formed on the metal gate layer 114by a deposition or other suitable process. The devices 102, 104 may eachfurther include a hard mask 118 formed over the dummy poly layer 116.Sidewall spacers 120 may be formed on either side of the gate stack asis known in the art. The sidewall spacers may include silicon nitride,silicon oxide, or silicon oxynitride.

The nFET 102 and pFET 104 devices may each further include source/drainregions including lightly doped source/drain regions and heavy dopedsource/drain regions. The source/drain regions may be formed byimplanting p-type or n-type dopants or impurities into the substrate 106depending on the configuration of the transistors 102, 104. Thetransistors 102, 104 may further include silicide features 122 formed onthe source/drain regions by a salicide (self-aligned silicide) processto form a contact.

After formation of the various microelectronic devices and structuresdiscussed above, a stressed layer may be formed over the substrate 106.For example, a tensile-contact etch stop layer (T-CESL) 130 may beformed over the nFET device 102, and a compressive-CESL (C-CESL) 140 maybe formed over the pFET device 104. The T-CESL 130 and C-CESL 140 may beformed of silicon nitride, silicon oxynitride, and/or other suitablematerials.

The method 200 continues with block 230 in which a first dielectriclayer may be formed over the substrate including the transistor. Adielectric layer such as an inter-layer (or level) dielectric (ILD)layer 150 may be formed overlying the T-CESL 130 and C-CESL 140 bychemical vapor deposition (CVD), high density plasma CVD (HDP), spin-onglass (SOG), physical vapor deposition (PVD or sputtering), or othersuitable methods. The ILD layer 150 may include silicon oxide, siliconoxynitride, or a low-k material.

The method 200 continues with block 240 in which a first contact plugmay be formed in the first dielectric layer. In FIG. 3B, a contact plug302 including a metal barrier layer 303 may be formed in the ILD layer150. The metal barrier layer 303 may be formed on the sidewalls andbottom of the contact plug 302. The contact plug 302 may be coupled tothe S/D region of the pFET device 104 via the silicide feature 122.Another contact plug 304 including a metal barrier layer 305 may beformed in the ILD layer 150 in a region 306 (similar to region 168 ofFIG. 1) where there are none or a few devices formed therein. That is, apattern density in the region 306 is substantially less than thepatterning density in the region of the devices 102, 104. For example,the region 306 may include an overlay box used for alignment in aphotolithography patterning process as was discussed above in FIG. 1.Accordingly, the contact plug 304 may be considered a dummy contact plugsince it is not being used as a contact/connecting structure. It shouldbe noted that the dummy contact plug may reduce the risk of erosionduring a subsequent ILD CMP process since the pattern density in region306 has been increased. Also, it is understood that the number of dummycontact plugs may vary and may depend on the desired pattern density tobe achieved in the region 306.

The contact plugs 302, 304 and metal barrier layers 303, 305 may beformed by first patterning and etching the ILD layer 150 to formtrenches. The trenches may be filled by depositing a metal barrierlayer, such as TiN, and then depositing a contact plug layer, such as W,on the metal barrier layer. A CMP process may be performed on thecontact plug layer and metal barrier layer, and may stop at the ILDlayer 150.

In a gate last process, the dummy poly gate structures 116 of thedevices 102, 104 may be removed and replaced with metal gate structuresas discussed below. The method 200 continues with block 250 in which aportion of the first dielectric layer may be removed to expose a portionof the dummy gate. In FIG. 3C, a CMP process (e.g., an ILD CMP process)310 may be performed on the ILD layer 150 to expose a top portion of thedummy poly layer 116 in the nFET 102 and pFET 104 devices. The CMPprocess 310 may first planarize the ILD layer 150 to reach the hard mask118, and then continue to remove the hard mask 118 until the top portionof the dummy poly layer 116 is reached. It should be noted that thecontact plug 302 between the devices 102, 104 may help prevent formationof a void between the devices 102, 104, and that the contact plug 304may help prevent erosion of region 306. Accordingly, a substantiallyplanar surface may result following the CMP process 310.

The method 200 continues with block 260 in which the dummy gate may beremoved and replaced with a metal. In FIG. 3D, the dummy poly layer 116may be removed in both the nFET 102 and pFET 104 device by an etch backprocess (wet etching) or other suitable process. Further, the metal gatelayer 114 in the pFET device 104 may be removed by an etch process sothat a P-metal may be re-deposited. It should be noted that the metalgate layer 114 in the nFET device 102 may remain and perform as anN-metal. Accordingly, the process may be considered as a hybrid processincluding a gate first process for the nFET device and a gate lastprocess for the pFET device. In other embodiments, both the metal gatesof the nFET 102 (N-metal) and pFET 104 (P-metal) devices are depositedafter removal of the dummy poly layer. Following the removal of the polygate structures 116, a trench 171 in the nFET device 102 and a trench172 in the pFET device 104 may be formed.

In FIG. 3E, a work function metal layer 180 such as WN or TiN may bedeposited over the dielectric layer 150 filling in a portion of thetrenches 171, 172. The work function metal layer 180 may be deposited byCVD or PVD. A filler metal layer 182 such as Al, W, or Cu may then bedeposited over the work function metal layer 180 filling in theremaining portion of the trenches 171, 172. The filler metal layer 182may be formed by CVD, PVD, plating, or other suitable process. In FIG.3F, a CMP (e.g., metal CMP process) process 320 may be performed on thefiller metal layer 180 and may stop at the interlayer dielectric 150.

The method 200 continues with block 270 in which a second dielectriclayer may be formed over the first dielectric layer. In FIG. 3G, adielectric barrier layer 330 may be formed on the planarized surface byCVD or other suitable process. The dielectric barrier layer 330 mayinclude SiON, SiC, combinations thereof, or other suitable material. Aninterlayer dielectric (ILD) layer 340 may be formed on the barrier layer330 by HDP, sub-atmospheric CVD (SACVD), spin-on glass (SOG), or othersuitable process. The ILD layer 340 may include silicon oxide, siliconoxynitride, or a low-k material.

The method 200 continues with block 280 in which a second contact plugmay be formed in the second dielectric layer, the second contact plugbeing coupled to the first contact plug. In FIG. 3H, a contact plug 352including a metal barrier layer 353 may be formed in the ILD layer 340and barrier layer 330. The metal barrier layer 353 may be formed on thesidewalls and bottom of the contact plug 352. The contact plug 352 maybe coupled to the contact plug 302 via the metal barrier layer 353.Another contact plug 354 including a metal barrier layer 355 may beformed in the ILD layer 340 and barrier layer 330 in the region 306. Thecontact plug 354 may be coupled to the contact plug 304 via the metalbarrier layer 355. In some embodiments, the contact plug 354 may beomitted since the contact plug 304 is used as a dummy contact plug.

The contact plugs 352, 354 and metal barrier layers 353, 355 may beformed by first patterning and etching the ILD layer 340 to formtrenches (e.g., using a similar photomask as in FIG. 3B). The trenchesmay be filled by depositing a metal barrier layer, such as TiN, and thendepositing a contact plug layer, such as W, on the metal barrier layer.In some embodiments, the metal barrier layer may include Ti/TiN for a Wcontact plug. In some other embodiments, the metal barrier layer mayinclude Ta/TaN for a Cu contact plug. A CMP process may be performed onthe contact plug layer and metal barrier layer, and may stop at the ILDlayer 340.

Thereafter, the semiconductor device 300 may undergo further processingsuch as forming an interconnect structure that includes a metal layer360 (e.g., first metal layer (M1)) for connecting to the dual firstcontact structure including contact plugs 302, 352 and metal barrierlayers 303, 353. The metal layer 360 may include a metal structure thatis electrically coupled to the contact plug 353. It should be noted thatthe contact plugs 354 and 304 may not be connected to the first metallayer 360 since the contact plugs 354 and 304 may be used as dummycontact plug to improve the ILD CMP process as discussed in FIG. 3C.However, in other embodiments, the contact plugs 354 and 304 may be usedas real contact/connect structures, and thus may be connected to theinterconnect structure.

Referring to FIG. 4, illustrated is a semiconductor device 400 having analternative dual first contact structure according to variousembodiments of the present disclosure. The semiconductor device 400 maybe similar to the semiconductor device 300 of FIG. 3H except for a sizeof the dual first contact structure. The semiconductor device 400 mayinclude a dual first contact structure having first contact plugs 412,414 that have a substantially larger width (cross-section) than secondcontact plugs 422, 424.

Referring to FIG. 5, illustrated is a semiconductor device 500 having analternative dual first contact structure according to variousembodiments of the present disclosure. The semiconductor device 500 maybe similar to the semiconductor device 300 of FIG. 3H except for a sizeof the dual first contact structure. The semiconductor device 500 mayinclude a dual first contact structure having first contact plugs 512,514 that have a substantially smaller width (cross-section) than secondcontact plugs 522, 524.

Referring to FIG. 6, illustrated is a semiconductor device 600 having analternative dual first contact structure according to variousembodiments of the present disclosure. The semiconductor device 600 maybe similar to the semiconductor device 300 of FIG. 3H except for a sizeof the dual first contact structure. The semiconductor device 600 mayinclude a dual first contact structure having first contact plugs 612,614 that have substantially a same width (cross-section) as secondcontact plugs 622, 624.

Thus, provided is a semiconductor device that includes a semiconductorsubstrate, a transistor formed on the substrate, the transistor having agate stack including a metal gate and high-k gate dielectric, and a dualfirst contact formed on the substrate, the dual first contact includinga first contact feature, a second contact feature overlying the firstcontact feature, and a metal barrier layer formed on sidewalls andbottom of the second contact feature, the metal barrier layer couplingthe first contact feature to the second contact feature. In someembodiments, the first contact feature and the second contact featureare each one of copper (Cu) and tungsten (W). In other embodiments, thefirst contact feature has substantially a same width as the secondcontact feature. In some other embodiments, the first contact featurehas substantially a different width as the second contact feature. Inother embodiments, the high-k gate dielectric includes one of HfO₂,HfZrO, and HfSiO₄. In still other embodiments, the high-k gatedielectric is a multi-layer structure including one of HfO₂/SiO₂ andHfO₂/SiON.

In some other embodiments, the transistor further includes a cappinglayer formed on the high-k gate dielectric, the capping layer includingone of Al₂O₃, La₂O₃, and LaSiO. In yet other embodiments, the transistorfurther includes a capping layer formed on the high-k gate dielectric,the capping layer having a multi-layer structure including one ofLa₂O₃/Si and La₂O₃/Al₂O₃. In some embodiments, the metal gate includesone of Al, W, Cu, WN, TiN, and combinations thereof. In otherembodiments, the transistor includes a doped region, wherein a firstcontact feature is coupled to the doped region via a silicide feature.

Also provided is a method for fabricating a semiconductor device thatincludes providing a semiconductor substrate, forming a transistorhaving a dummy gate structure, forming a first dielectric layer over thesubstrate including the transistor, forming a first contact feature inthe first dielectric layer, removing a portion of the first dielectriclayer to expose a portion of the dummy gate structure, removing thedummy gate structure and replacing it with a metal gate, forming asecond dielectric layer over the first dielectric layer, and forming asecond contact feature and a metal barrier in the second dielectriclayer, the second contact feature being coupled to the first contactfeature via the metal barrier. In some embodiments, the step of removingthe portion of the first dielectric layer includes performing a chemicalmechanical polishing (CMP) on the first dielectric layer. In otherembodiments, the step of removing the dummy gate structure and replacingit with a metal gate includes performing an etch back process to removethe dummy gate structure thereby forming a trench, filling a portion ofthe trench with a work function metal layer, filling the remainingportion of the trench with a filler metal layer, and performing a CMPprocess on the filler metal layer and work function metal layer to formthe metal gate. In some other embodiments, the method further includesforming a metal layer over the second dielectric layer, the metal layerbeing electrically coupled to the second contact feature.

Further, a semiconductor device is provided that includes asemiconductor substrate having a first region and a second region, atleast two transistors formed in the first region, the at least twotransistors each having a metal gate and high-k gate dielectric, and adual contact structure formed in the first region between the at leasttwo transistors. The dual contact structure includes a first contactplug, the first contact plug having a surface that is co-planar with asurface of the metal gate and a second contact plug coupled to thesurface of the first contact plug. In some embodiments, thesemiconductor device further includes a first metal layer of aninterconnect structure, wherein the second contact plug is coupled tothe first metal layer. In other embodiments, the second region includesa pattern density that is substantially less than a pattern density ofthe first region and the semiconductor device further includes a dummycontact plug disposed in the second region, the dummy contact plug beingco-planar with the first contact plug. In some other embodiments, thefirst contact plug, second contact plug, and dummy contact plug are eachone of copper (Cu) and tungsten (W). In still other embodiments, thedual contact structure further includes a metal barrier layer formed onthe sidewalls and bottom of the second contact plug, the metal barrierlayer coupling the first contact plug to the second contact plug. In yetother embodiments, the dual contact structure includes a barrier metallayer formed on the sidewalls and bottom of the second contact plug, thebarrier metal layer directly contacting the surface of the first contactplug.

The present invention achieves different advantages in variousembodiments disclosed herein. For example, the present disclosed methodprovides a simple and cost-effective method and device for integrating adual first contact structure in a gate last process or hybrid process.Also, the methods and devices disclosed herein may be easily integratedwith current CMP process flow and thus are applicable in future andadvanced technologies. Further, the methods and devices disclosed hereinmay help reduce the risk of erosion in regions of the substrate thathave substantially less pattern densities as compared to other regionsof the substrate, or dishing in other regions. Thus, a substantiallyplanar surface may be achieved which improves the fabrication process.

The foregoing has outlined features of several embodiments so that thoseskilled in the art may better understand the detailed description thatfollows. Those skilled in the art should appreciate that they mayreadily use the present disclosure as a basis for designing or modifyingother processes and structures for carrying out the same purposes and/orachieving the same advantages of the embodiments introduced herein.Those skilled in the art should also realize that such equivalentconstructions do not depart from the spirit and scope of the presentdisclosure, and that they may make various changes, substitutions andalterations herein without departing from the spirit and scope of thepresent disclosure.

1. A method for fabricating a semiconductor device, the methodcomprising: providing a semiconductor substrate; forming a transistorhaving a dummy gate structure on the semiconductor substrate; forming afirst dielectric layer over the substrate including the transistor;forming a first contact feature in the first dielectric layer; forming adummy contact feature in the first dielectric layer; removing a portionof the first dielectric layer to expose a portion of the dummy gatestructure; removing the dummy gate structure and replacing it with ametal gate; forming a second dielectric layer over the first dielectriclayer; and forming a second contact feature and a metal barrier in thesecond dielectric layer, the second contact feature being coupled to thefirst contact feature via the metal barrier.
 2. The method of claim 1wherein the forming the dummy contact feature includes forming the dummycontact feature adjacent the transistor and substantially coplanar withthe first contact feature.
 3. The method of claim 1 wherein the removingthe dummy gate structure and replacing it with a metal gate includes:performing an etch back process to remove the dummy gate structurethereby forming a trench; filling a portion of the trench with a workfunction metal layer; filling the remaining portion of the trench with afiller metal layer; and performing a CMP process on the filler metallayer and work function metal layer to form the metal gate.
 4. Themethod of claim 1 further comprising forming a metal layer over thesecond dielectric layer, the metal layer being electrically coupled tothe second contact feature.
 5. The method of claim 1 wherein the formingthe first contact feature and the second contact feature comprisesforming the first contact feature to have a substantially same width asthe second contact feature.
 6. The method of claim 1 wherein the formingthe first contact feature and the second contact feature comprisesforming the first contact feature to have a substantially differentwidth as the second contact feature.
 7. A method comprising: providing asubstrate; forming a transistor in the substrate, the transistor havinga dummy gate; forming an inter-level dielectric (ILD) layer over thesubstrate and transistor; forming a contact feature in the ILD layer;forming a dummy contact feature in the ILD layer, the dummy contactfeature being substantially coplanar with the contact feature; and afterforming the contact feature, replacing the dummy gate of the transistorwith a metal gate.
 8. The method of claim 7 wherein the forming thecontact feature in the ILD layer comprises forming a dual contact, thedual contact including a first contact feature and a second contactfeature overlying the first contact feature, the second contact featurebeing coupled to the first contact feature.
 9. The method of claim 8wherein the forming the dual contact comprises forming a metal barrierlayer on the sidewalls and bottom of the second contact feature, suchthat the metal barrier layer effects the coupling between the first andsecond contact features.
 10. The method of claim 8 wherein the formingthe dual contact including the first and second contact featurescomprises forming the first contact feature in a first ILD layer andforming the second contact feature in a second ILD layer.
 11. The methodof claim 7 wherein the replacing the dummy gate of the transistor with ametal gate comprises: performing a chemical mechanical polishing (CMP)process on the ILD layer until the dummy gate is exposed; performing anetch back process to remove the dummy gate, thereby forming a trench;filling a portion of the trench with a work function metal layer;filling the remaining portion of the trench with a filler metal layer;and performing another CMP process on the filler metal layer and workfunction metal layer to form the metal gate.
 12. The method of claim 11wherein the forming the transistor comprises including a high-kdielectric layer in a gate stack of the transistor, the gate stackincluding the filler metal layer and work function metal layer.
 13. Amethod comprising: providing a semiconductor substrate having a firstregion and a second region; forming a transistor having a dummy gate inthe first region of the semiconductor; forming an inter-level dielectric(ILD) layer over the semiconductor substrate and transistor; forming acontact feature in the ILD layer in the first region and a dummy contactfeature in the ILD layer in the second region; and after forming thecontact and dummy contact features, replacing the dummy gate of thetransistor with a metal gate.
 14. The method of claim 13 wherein theforming the contact feature and the dummy contact feature comprisesforming a contact plug having a metal barrier layer surrounding thecontact plug.
 15. The method of claim 14 wherein the forming the contactplug having the metal barrier layer surrounding the contact plugcomprises: selecting a material for the contact plug from one of copper(Cu) and tungsten (W); and selecting a material for the metal barrierlayer from Ti, TiN, Ta, TaN, or combination thereof.
 16. The method ofclaim 13 further comprising: after replacing the dummy gate of thetransistor with the metal gate, forming another ILD layer over the ILDlayer having the contact and dummy contact features formed therein; andforming another contact feature in the another ILD layer, the anothercontact feature being coupled to the contact feature in the ILD layer.17. The method of claim 16 wherein the forming the another contactfeature in the another ILD layer comprises forming a metal barrier layeron the sidewalls and bottom of the another contact feature, such thatthe metal barrier layer effects the coupling between the contactfeatures of the ILD layers.
 18. The method of claim 13 wherein theforming the contact feature in the ILD layer comprises coupling thecontact feature to a doped region of the transistor.
 19. The method ofclaim 13 wherein the replacing the dummy gate of the transistor with ametal gate comprises: performing a chemical mechanical polishing (CMP)process on the ILD layer until the dummy gate is exposed; performing anetch back process to remove the dummy gate, thereby forming a trench;filling a portion of the trench with a work function metal layer;filling the remaining portion of the trench with a filler metal layer;and performing another CMP process on the filler metal layer and workfunction metal layer to form the metal gate.
 20. The method of claim 13wherein the forming the transistor comprises forming a high-k dielectriclayer.